Signaling system for railways.



No. 773,415. PATENTED 0GT.'25, 1904. U. G. O-TWELL & I. H. MELVIN. SIGNALING SYSTEM FOR R-AILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 11, 1904.

N0 MODEL.

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SIGNALING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED I'EB.11, 1904.

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No. 773,415. PATENTED OCT. 25, 1904.

G. G. OTWELL & I. H. MELVIN.

SIGNALING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAYS.

APPLICATION FILED FEB. 11, 1904.

N0 MODEL. I 4 a SHEETS-SHEET a.

' UNITED ST TES Patented October 25, 1904.

PATENT QFFICE.

CHARLES GOODMAN OTWELL AND IRA HOWARD MELVIN, ()F LAUREL, DELAWARE.

SIGNAEING SYSTEM FOR RAILWAYS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 773,415, dated October 25, 1904.

Application filed February 11, 1904:. Serial No. 193,178. (No model.)

To roll It'll/077$ it may concern:

Be it known that we, CHARLES GOODMAN OTWELL and IRA HOWARD MELVIN, citizens of the United States, residing at Laurel, in the county of Sussex and State of Delaware, have invented new and useful Improvements in Signaling Systems for Railways, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to a signaling sys- IO tern for railways, the object of the invention being to provide a simple means of this character which can be readily and inexpensively installed and which is efifectiveunder all conditions that is to say, it does not become in- I5 operative in snowy or sleety weather, an objection which certain systems with which we are familiar possess.

In that arrangement of the system which we have selected for illustration in the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification, it involves an actuator for a circuit-controller carried by a locomotive or other moving vehicle, which actuator, as will hereinafter appear, is described as a bar mounted for rising and falling movement in adjacence to a track and which is intended to Operate in conjunction with a semaphore or other signal. e prefer to have said actuator or bar operative with the said sema- 3 phore or equivalent signal, so that when said semaphore or equivalent signal is set to danger by a Signalman or block-house operator the bar or actuator, to which reference has been made, will be caused to assume its 0p- 3 5 erative position, so that said actuator or bar can effect the action of the circuit-controller when the locomotive or other vehicle reaches said actuator. The circuit-controller governs a circuit including a signal on said locomo- 4 tive or vehicle, and this signal preferably is an audible one-saya bell-so that should the engineer or other person in charge of the moving vehicle or train fail to see the semaphore he will be apprised of danger by the sounding of the bellor analogous audible signal. \Vhile we prefer to use a bell, it is not our intention to limit the invention in this respect, for a visual signal can be substituted therefor, although an audible signal possesses the advantage set forth that is to say, in case the 5 engineman should fail to see the semaphorearm he will hear the audible signal, or in case he should be incapacitated from any cause his fireman will hear such audible signal. As under certain conditions the sema phore is apt to become inoperative,we prefer to provide means for efi ecting the movement of said actuator or bar independently of the semaphore.

We desire to state at this pointthat we do not limit ourselves to the exact disclosure made by the hereinbefore-mentioned drawings in connection with thefollowingdescription, for certain variations may be adopted within the scope of our claims succeeding such description.

Referring to said drawings, Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of a signaling system including our invention. Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the actuator or bar to which refer- 7o ence has been made and which constitutes a part of said system. Figs. 3 aud t are sectional elevations taken through said actuator or bar and showing the same in its inoperative and operative positions, respectively. Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the circuit-controller shown in Fig. 1, for eX- ample. Fig. 6 is a sectional elevation illustrating said circuit-controller and a springcontact hereinafter described. Fig. 7 is a 0 sectional elevation also illustrating said circuit-controller and means for positively maintaining same in its normal position. Fig.

8 is a diagrammatic view showing a plurality of circuit-controllers and their respective cir- 8 5 cuits. Fig.- 9 is a perspective view showing a portion of the actuator and an operating means therefor.

Like characters refer to like parts throughout the different views.

In Fig. l we have represented a portion of a semaphore-signal, the same comprising a mast or upright, as 2, arranged in proximity to the track or tracks over which trains or vehicles pass, it being evident that the improved system can be used equally Well with steam or electric railways or, in fact, railways of anyother type. Pivotally mounted upon the mast or post 2 is a swinging semaphore-arm 3, connected by a suitable rod or other connection, as 4:, with the weighted arm of the lever 5, fulcrumed upon said mast below the semaphore-arm. The weighted lever of course serves as usual for setting the semaphore-arm to danger, at which time it occupies a horizontal position.

The numeral 6 denotes a wire, rope, or equivalent connection running from a block or signal house (not shown) and having at its forward terminal portion, as represented in Fig. 1, the branches 7 and 8, extending over suitable sheaves or guide-pulleys, each denoted by 9, rotatively supported by the mast 2 near the base thereof. The branch 7 of the wire or rope 6 extends upward from the upper sheave or pulley 9 and is suitably connected at its upper end with the non- Weighted branch ofthe lever 5, whereby when the rope or wire 6 is released the lever will be also released to permit the weighted arm of said lever to drop to the position shown in Fig. 1, the wire or rope 6 at this time being caused to move toward the right in Fig. l. Simultaneously, of course, the branch 8 of the rope or cable 6 will be also released and will move in a corresponding direction. What might be considered the outer terminal portion of said branch 8 is connected with the inner end of the actuator 10, which, it will be remembered, has been set forth as consisting in the present case of a bar. It should be stated that the branch 8 of the rope or cable 6 extends between the guide-sheaves 11, supported by a suitable bearing upon the road-bed. The bar 10 is somewhat elongated, so as to secure the sounding of a signal hereinafter described for a comparatively long time, and is arranged in adjacence to and preferably in parallelism with a rail. The bar may be arranged either between two rails or outside the same, this being simply a matter of individual choice, and said bar 10 is shown as being of substantially T form in cross-section, and its opposite ends are curved or inclined downward from the major portion thereof, so as to assure the guiding of a traveling contact member hereinafter described onto the main portion of the upper surface of said actuator.

Links, as 12, are pivotally connected at their upper ends to the web of the actuator or bar 10 and are connected at their lower ends to suitable brackets, as 13, fastened to the crossties or otherwise mounted, there being two links in each case. Normally, or when the semaphore-arm 3 is at safety, the upper surface of the actuator or bar 10 will be situated below the corresponding surface of an adjacent rail. When, however, the somaphore-arm is set to danger, by paying off the cable or rope 6 said actuator or bar is elevated automatically to the working position, (shown in Fig. a as will hereinafter appear,

and it is returned subsequently to its initial or safety position, as will hereinafter appear. By virtue of the linkage mounting of the actuator or bar 10, the links being situated at opposite sides of the center of said bar, the latter will be caused to retain a horizontal position during its rising and falling movements.

The means shown for automatically throwing the actuator or bar to its working or operative position, or that shown in Fig. 4, will now be set forth. A lever is shown at 14 in Figs. 1 and 9, the lever being of approximately angle or elbow form, the upper or forked branch thereof being connected to the web of the bar 10 substantially centrally thereof, while a link, as 15, is pivotally connected to the lower forked branch of said angle-lever, a cord, rope, or band, as 16, being connected to the end of the link opposite that united to the angle-lever. This cord 16 extends over the horizontally-alined guidesheaves 17 and 18,and downward from the sheave l8,a weight, as 19, of suitable efiiciency being connected to the terminal or free portion of said cord or band 16. This weight 19 is mounted for ascending and descending movement in the box 20, sunk into the ground adjacent the bar 10 and having a removable cap 21, by which access may be had to the interior thereof. The sheave 18 is mounted within said boxing, while the sheave 17 is carried by an extension on the cap or cover 21 thereof, said extension being of hood form to overhang the said sheave 17. In this way both sheaves as well as the weight are protected. (Jruards, customary in this class of devices, may cover the bearings of the links 12 and the lever 1 k and link 15, although none is shown.

From the foregoing descriptionit will be apparent that when the cable or equivalent part 6 is released by a signalman through the usual mechanism (not illustrated) the semaphore-arm 3 and bar 10 will be released, so that the weight of the lever 5 can swing the semaphore-arm to its danger position and so that simultaneously the weight 19 by falling can through the intermediate parts swing the bar 10 upward to its working position or that shown in Figs. 1 and 1, the semaphorearm being also represented in its danger position in said Fig. l. \Vhen the bar 10 is up, as shown in said two figures, it is in posi tion to positively actuate acircuit-control ler, hereinafter described, carried by a locomotive or other moving vehicle. Therefore it will be evident that the signaling means upon said vehicle can be operated while the vehicle is in motion and being audible, preferably as set forth, will apprise an engineer of danger, even should he from any cause fail to see the semaphorcarm 5.

We provide, as will now appear, means for effecting the automatic action of the bar 10 independently of the semaphore-arm 3.

Referring to Fig. 1, the numeral 22 denotes a wire, band, or cable suitably connected at its terminal portion to the bar 10. When the semaphore-arm and the bar are controlled through the agency of the wire or cable 6, the wire 22 is not operative; but it should be suffi'ciently free as to not interfere with the proper action of the semaphore-arm and bar, means, as the weight 23, being provided to take up slack in the terminal portion of said band 22, said weight being connected to the cord 24, running over asuitable sheave 25 in the box 26 and connected with said cord 22. Should the semaphore-arm 3 become inoperative from any cause by the cord 6, the latter is paid off and the cord 22 tightened, and when the latter is tightened it is drawn to the left in Fig. 1, so as to swing down the bar 10 to its ineffective position or that represented in Fig. 3. The cord 22 is then used simply to control the bar 10, and when it becomes necessary'to throw the latter to its operative position the cord 22 is paid off or released, following which the weight 19,by dropping in the manner hereinbefore set forth, serves to elevate, through the intermediate connections, the bar 10 to its working position. In a single-track railway we of course provide two actuators or bars 10 in proximity to each semaphore-arm and necessarily in such a case as this provide two circuit-controllers and two signal-circuits, one circuit-controller 7 being operative by a bar when a train or ve- 'hicle is moving in one direction, while the other bar and circuit'controller are effective avhen the train or vehicle is traveling in the opposite direction, assuming, of course, that the bar in each case is elevated.

Referring to Fig. 5, the circuit-controller therein illustrated is denoted in a general way by 27, and it involves in its make-up a shaft 28, carrying a circuit-closing part, as will hereinafter appear. This shaft 28 is supported for rocking motion by the hollow arms 29, suitably fastened to the board 30, connected in turn to a locomotive or other vehicle. The rock-shaft 28 has near its opposite ends the depending arms 31, longitudinally slotted at their lower ends to receive the pivot pins or studs 32, extending from the core of the roller 33, the core of which is made of rubber, fiber, or other. suitable yielding material, so as to prevent the injury to the metallic surface of said roller. The pins 32 by playing in the longitudinal slots in the arms 31 cause yielding movement of the roller, so as to avoid injury to the same should obstructions be encountered thereby upon the bar 10 or at any other point. It will be, therefore, evident that when the bar 10 is elevated the roller travels in contact with the upper surface of the same on the movement of a vehicle equipped with said roller.

The rock-shaft 28 has a suitable enlargement or shoulder 34, provided with a flat upper side, against which the free end of the spring 35 bears, said spring having an angular extension suitably fastened to the board 30 and being engaged between its ends by the set-screw 36, tapped through a bridge-piece 3'7, uniting the arms 29. The set-screw serves to regulate the engagement of the free end of the spring 35 with the Hat portion of the shoulder 34, the spring being efiective by engaging such flat surface to maintain the arms 31 in a vertical position. Therefore, notwithstanding how rapid a train may be traveling, the arms 31 will be maintained by the spring in position to cause the roller 33 to engage the upper surface of the bar 10 when the latter is in its effective relation.

We will now set forth the circuits upon the vehicle or locomotive shown in Fig. 1, which circuits are clearly represented in Fig. 8.

Two spring-contacts are shown in said Fig. 8, each being denoted by 38, said spring-contacts 38 being mounted in the respective hollow arms 29, hereinbefore described. (See Fig. 6, for example.) The two contacts 38 are shown connected by a conductor or wire 39, while the two shafts 28, constituting part of the conductor system, are shown as connected by a wire 40. 42, respectively, lead from the wires 39 and 40, approximately centrally thereof, to the signal 43, (shown as a bell,) the wire 42 being intersected by a battery 44, whilethe wire 41 is intersected by a push-button 45 or its equivalent.

Referring again to Figs. 5 and 6, it will be seen that one end of the rock-shaft 28 is cut away to present a segmental or semicylin- 'drical portion 46, constituting a circuit-closer. When the arms 31 are occupying their normal positions, at which time they are vertical, the upper fiat face of the segmental circuit-closer 46 will be adjacent to but not in engagement with the free portion of the spring-contact 38, (shown in Fig. 6,) this relation being maintained, as will be understood, by the spring 35.

Normally, of course, the bars 10 are below the plane of the'roll 33. hen, however, a bar 10 is elevated in the manner hereinbefore described, the said roller on the travel of a locomotive or other vehicle equipped with the same will ride up the inclined portion at the entering end of said bar and will then pass in contact with the horizontal portion thereof, so as to swing the arms 31. to an angular position, as represented in Fig. 1, whereby the segmental portion 46 will be pressed against the spring-contact 38, thereby completing an electric circuit, which circuit embraces a shaft 28, wires 39 and 40, wires 41 and 42-, battery Branch wires, as 41 and 44, and bell 43, thereby ringing the latter and I neously the circuit-closing part 46 will be moved away from the spring-contact 38 in order to break the bell or equivalent signalcircuit.

Owing to the inclined ends of the bar 10, the roller 33 will enter and leave said bar without shock or possibility of deranging any of the parts.

It will be understood that where in the foregoing description and following claims we employ certain terms we use them in their broad senses. For example, when we use the term semaphore-arm we intend to include thereby analogous devices.

Having thus described our invention, what we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is"

1. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, asignal in said circuit and a circuit-controller, combined with an actuator for said circuit-controller, supported independently of said vehicle and consisting of an elongated bar, suitably supported links connected with the bar near its opposite ends, means in position to act against said bar between said links in a direction to elevate the same, and means acting in opposition to the bar-elevating means for normally holding the latter ineffective.

2. In a signaling system, a vehicle having signaling means, and a signal-controlling device, an actuator, supported independently of the vehicle, for operating said controlling device to render the signal effective, said actuator consisting of an elongated bar, suitablysupported links connected with the bar near its opposite ends, means for releasing the bar, and a weight connected with said bar for moving the same into the operative position thereof.

3. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and a circuit-controller, combined with an actuator for said circuit-controller, supported independently of the vehicle and mounted for rising and falling movements, a semaphore-arm, a suitably-operated cable connected with the semaphore-arm and actuator and adapted, when caused to move in one direction, to release the semaphore-arm and actuator, means for simultaneously setting the semaphore-arm to danger and elevating the actuator when said parts are released, and means for releasing the actuator independently of the semaphore-arm.

4:. In a signaling system, a vehicle having a signal and a signal-operating device, an actuator for said signal-operating device, supported independently of the vehicle, and consisting of an elongated bar, a lever connected with the bar between the ends of the latter, suitably-mounted links connected with the bar at opposite sides of the lever, and automatic means for actuating the lever.

5. In a signaling system, a vehicle havinga signal and a signal-operating device, an actuator for said signal-operating device, supported independently of the vehicle, and consisting of an elongated bar, a lever connected with the bar between the ends of the latter, suitably-mounted links connected with the bar at opposite sides of the lever, and a weight connected with the lever for actuating the same.

6. In a signaling system, an actuator for a circuit-controller or other signal-operating device, consisting of an elongated bar, mounted for rising and falling movements, suitablysupported links connected with the bar, and an automatically operable lever connected with said bar between the links.

7. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and an oscillatory circuit controller, yieldable means for normally holding the circuit-controller in its normal position, combined with an actuator for said circuit-controller, supported independently of said vehicle and mounted for rising and falling movements, and mechanism for causing the actuator to rise into its cfi'ective or circuit-controller-opcrating position.

8; In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and a circuit-controller, the ci rcuit-controller having a shaft provided with a segmental portion, and the circuit having a spring-contact adapted to be engaged by the said segmental portion on the movement of the circuit-controller, combined with an actuator for said circuit-controller, supported independently of the vehicle and mounted for rising and falling movements, and mechanism for causing the actuator to rise into its effective or circuit-controller-operating position.

9. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and a circuit-controller, combined with an actuator for said circuit'controller, supported ind ependently of the vehicle and mounted for rising and falling movements, automatic mechanism for elevating the circuit-controller, a semzqahore-arm, a weighted lever connected with the semaphore-arm for setting the same to danger, and a cable having branches connected respectively with said lever and actuator.

10. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and a circuit-controller, combined with an actuator for said circuit-controller, supported independcntly of the vehicle and mounted for rising and falling movements, automatic mechanism for elevating the circuit-controller, a semaphore-arm, a weighted lever connected with the semaphore-arm for setting the same to danger, a cable having branches connected respectively with said lever and actuator, and a second cable connected solely with said actuator.

11. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit, a signal in said circuit, and a circuit-controller, combined With an actuator for said circuit-controller, supported inclependently of the vehicle and mounted for rising and falling movements, automatic mechanism for elevating the circuit-controller, a semaphore-arm, a Weighted lever connected With the semaphore-arm for setting the same to danger, a cable having branches connected respectively with said lever and actuator, a second cable connected solely with said actuator, and means for taking up slack in said second cable.

12. In a signaling system, a vehicle having an electric circuit,and a circuit-controller comprising a rock-shaft having depending arms carrying a roller, said rock-shaft having a segmental portion,and the circuit having a springcontact adapted to be engaged by said segmental portion on the shifting of the circuitcontroller, means for normally maintaining said arms in a vertical position, an elongated bar constituting an actuator for the circuitcontroller, having inclined portions at its opposite ends. said bar being mounted for rising and falling movements and adapted, When elevated, to be engaged by the circuit-controller, and means for automatically elevating the bar.

In testimony whereof We have hereunto set our hands in presence of tWo subscribing Witnesses.

CHARLES GOODMAN OTWELL. I IRA HOWARD MELVIN.

Witnesses:

JOHN H. ELLIOTT, JOHN T. MILsoN. 

